1. Technical Field.
This invention relates generally to infrared control systems such as those used to control television sets, cable television selectors, and video cassette recorders, and more particularly to a smart infrared controller that will work with virtually any infrared remote control unit.
2. Background Information.
Recall that an infrared remote control unit such as a conventional television channel changer, often takes the form of a handheld infrared transmitter outfitted with an array of pushbuttons. An operator desiring to change channels pushes one or more of the buttons. That causes the remote control transmitter to emit an infrared signal encoded with control information. An infrared controller at the television set responds to the infrared signal by making the desired channel change.
Now consider the task of designing a motorized television stand that an operator can rotate by remote control. Preferably, the rotatable stand includes a controller that responds to the remote control transmitter the operator uses to change television channels. That way, the operator can rotate the stand and change channels using the same transmitter. But the various remote control transmitters commercially available are not always compatible because they do not all encode the infrared signals the same way. So, a controller designed to recognize signals sent with one remote control transmitter might not work with another. That problem is compounded by the ability of manufacturers to change the design of their transmitters each year for competitive or other reasons. Therefore, it is desirable to have a controller that can better accommodate differences in remote control transmitters.